Content warning: This story discusses sexual assault involving a minor.
A Nova Scotia social worker has given up her ability to practice after serious allegations of sexually assaulting a minor.
In May of 2022, Temperance Winger reported that she was groomed, harboured and sexually abused from 2013 to 2017 in Ontario.
The alleged abuser, Sherri Boyd, registered with the Nova Scotia College of Social Workers in January, and throughout the investigation, the college restricted Boyd’s ability to practice.
Last year, Boyd gave up her official registration.
Lead college investigator Valerie Heard says they have never seen a case like this.
“The stakes are high, and our job at the college is to balance public protection with procedural fairness and to do the work carefully, and I believe that we’ve done that,” said Heard.
She says the allegations were not proven in court, but Boyd—also known as Sherri Lynn Ashcroft Boyd—did not contest them. Heard says Boyd also refused to answer questions related to the investigation, even though she was legally required to.
Typically, the college does not reveal the identity of the person who filed the complaint, but they say Winger asked to give an impact statement and be named in the decision.
“Ms. Winger’s statement highlighted the devastating harm caused by Ms. Boyd’s actions and underscored the importance of accountability in this case,” the college wrote in the decision.
In the decision summary document, the college says Winger emphasized that she “chooses every day to heal.”
Timeline
After the college of social workers got the complaint in May 2022, they started investigating. Two months later, they had imposed several restrictions on Boyd’s work. She was not allowed to have any clients younger than 24 years old, and she had a supervisor appointed by the college, along with other conditions, including reporting to the college.
A year later, on July 4, 2023, Boyd’s social worker registration was temporarily suspended, meaning she could not practice as a social worker, advertise, or use the title of professional social worker.
Then, in 2025, Boyd applied to have her professional registration revoked, which they approved.
Allegations
The college of social workers says they approved the revocation request because of several “aggravating factors,” according to the written decision summary.
“Ms. Boyd made no admissions and therefore has not demonstrated remorse or insight into her conduct,” they wrote.
Winger was a minor at the time, while Boyd was the de facto guardian and showed a pattern of grooming and sexual misconduct, they say.
She encouraged harmful and “inappropriate discussions of pedophilia,” they say, including saying pedophilia is okay and that Winger should think the same, and asking Winger to talk about how pedophilia and age are a “social construct” with others online.
The college sent a more detailed description of the allegations in an emailed news release.
They allege Boyd asked Winger to call her “mom,” had Winger move into her home with her family, and distanced Winger from her family.
Some of the other allegations include rape, sexual touching, kissing, and more.
A lengthy investigation
Heard says the investigation took the time that it needed to take, but some of that time was spent getting over jurisdictional hurdles.
She says much of the allegations happened in Ontario and some in Nova Scotia. The college technically has powers in Nova Scotia, and gathering information from Ontario was difficult.
“There’s multiple steps, careful documentation, legal process,” said Heard.
“I absolutely would have liked to have seen this matter concluded sooner. It did take the time it the required time that it needed to, and I value that the college has the ability to impose internal restriction suspensions so the public can be protected while we walk through those steps.”
Boyd will not be able to apply to be reinstated as a social worker for at least five years, and she will pay a $15,000 fine to cover the cost of the investigation for NSCSW.
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